#hespera hyrule

[sokkas-first-fangirl]

What was Hespera‘s relationship with Rhoam like before she passed away?

Usually a happy one. Hespera really curbed Rhoam's worst impulses; he was a better, happier man with her. Without her, there's no one else he's actually willing to take criticism from or learn from, and he takes his grief out on those around him- especially on Zelda.

Hespera knew he tended to be arrogant and stubborn, that he sometimes spoke without thinking about the feelings of others, but she was also the only person he was actually willing to work on himself for. If we had a prequel of them, Rhoam would be a totally different man than the one we see in "Luminous."

Neither of them were big on PDA, but they held hands a lot. They were the type of couple who'd be happy to just sit and read together. They enjoyed debating each other and walking in the castle's gardens. They both enjoyed music and, although Rhoam didn't personally loved dancing, he was always happy to watch Hespera dance with her friends and with Zelda.

Rhoam was torn between fervent belief that Hespera could seal Calamity Ganon (he truly did believe in her) and utter terror for her safety. He had plenty of nightmares about her dying to Ganon.

Hespera liked that Rhoam was clever and dedicated. She'd tease him for being too stern and do her best to make him laugh and smile. Hespera thought he had gorgeous hair; Rhoam wasn't happy when it prematurely started to go grey, but she never cared. She told him it made him look distinguished. She once wrote a terrible, silly poem all about his beard to amuse him. She loved his smile.

[sokkas-first-fangirl]

Could you share some more information about Queen Hespera?

Certainly! Tidbits and explanations under the cut ✨

"Queen Hespera Tetra Hyrule of beloved memory. May she be welcomed into Hylia's light and the embrace of the Golden Three. May she be welcomed into the Sacred Realm by her ancestors with love and pride."

Hespera was six years younger than her older sister, Crown Princess Zelda, the youngest child of Queen Zelda and the King. Her father died when she was only a year old; like Hespera, he died of an illness, though his was not so sudden and had different symptoms.

She had the same hair colour and eye-shape as our Zelda, her daughter; her eye colour was usually compared to sea-glass. She was very tall, inheriting her height from her father's side; she was nearly a full head taller than her mother. If members of the court were asked, they would say that Hespera could often be found laughing and smiling.

Hespera was a very curious person. Put a new topic in front of her and she'd study it, even if it didn't initially catch her interest. She adored cats, music and dancing. Her favourite colours were lavender and pink. Her favourite flower was roses. She loved studying history and mythology, as well as botany and elixir-making. She would frequently take Zelda out exploring; she began to study ancient Sheikah tech just so she could tell Zelda more about it, seeing how much her daughter was fascinated with it all.

Her elder sister's death made her afraid of horse riding for a full year. For the rest of her life, Hespera would ride her horse slowly, refusing to gallop the way she and her sister used to.

Lady Izzara, Impa and Purah's mother, was her personal aide, advisor and bodyguard. Urbosa was her best friend, one of the people she loved the most in the world. They met when they were both only five-years-old, to celebrate the birth of Urbosa's little sister, Dara.

The prophecy about Ganon's return was given three years before Zelda's birth. Until it became obvious she wasn't going to recover, everyone thought that Hespera would be the one to seal Calamity Ganon. She knew that Hylia's Chosen Hero would likely be a child or, at the very least, a young teenager when they found him. As such, she'd long ago made up her mind to act as a mentor and friend to him. The thought of someone Zelda's age or, for all she knew, younger than Zelda, being expected to fight Ganon with her terrified her.

One of her biggest fears as she lay dying was that Zelda would be expected to face Ganon now. She hated it, she couldn't stand it. She kept having nightmares about it and that distress and terror only served to weaken her more quickly.

It took three days for Hespera to name Zelda when she was born. Contrary to popular belief, she didn't name her daughter to honour tradition; it was to honour her sister. The nickname "little bird" was instantaneous; as soon as Zelda was placed in her arms, Hespera knew what her pet-name would be.

Zelda tends to call her closest people "darling." Similarly, Hespera called her closest people "sweetheart." Her pet-name for Rhoam specifically was "my dearest."

She never liked Rhoam's parents and she couldn't quite pin-point why. All the same, she made sure to keep them at a distance.

One of her favourite things to do with Rhoam was debate. She loved a good, friendly argument; she loved being asked questions that really made her sit down and think out her answers. Like her daughter, she loved being outdoors.

Her favourite dragon was Naydra, of course, but she had a soft-spot for Dinraal. Her magic awakened when she was nine-years-old.

She was a very popular Queen. She often visited the people of Castle Town, especially the orphanages. She always made it plain that anyone, regardless of rank, could come to her with their grievances. She intended to return full control of the Sheikah tech to the Sheikah. Hespera couldn't fathom how much information and aid was lost due to the paranoia of one long-dead king. She wanted to return the Sheikah's technology and full role to them; instead of working solely in the shadows (even if they are the Shadow People) she wanted to fully welcome the tribe and their magic and technology at court, among the kingdom at large, and fully acknowledge their historical role as Hylia's followers and guardians. She wanted to help find old forgotten Sheikah traditions and give them the opportunity to take them back, to restore their tribe's power and land. (My headcanon is that the Sheikah had more land than Kakariko once-upon-a-time, another thing the Ancient King took from them. Hespera intended to give it all back, even if it would be a slow process.)

Zelda was born with the dawn. Hespera died as the sun set.

She begged Rhoam to look after Zelda, but she died before she could break the rules and tell Rhoam how to unlock the sacred sealing power. By that point, she was too weak to talk much and was saving her strength to tell him everything.

Hespera and Rhoam were talking about having more children when she fell ill.

Although she never got the chance to tell Rhoam about the sacred magic, there is one rule she broke: she told Urbosa where the Master Sword was hidden when they were teenagers.

[sokkas-first-fangirl]

Have a deleted POV from “Luminous” on this fine evening: Lady Izzara, Impa and Purah’s mother

She was supposed to kneel to Hylia’s Chosen. Indeed, she had knelt, along with every other Sheikah present, when Captain Roland escorted his young son into the throne room.

But kneeling then, when Hylia’s Chosen likely hadn’t even seen her, and now when she was supposed to welcome him to Hyrule Castle and escort him around the grounds, felt very different.

Izzara had been stricken by how young Link Hallow was. Even younger than her own girls. Only a few months older than Princess Zelda.

She was Sheikah. The Elder, no less. The former aide and guardian of Queen Hespera. Izzara knew her role and was honoured to fulfil it…So then, why could she not bring herself to kneel? This boy wielded the Master Sword, he was Hylia’s Chosen, the reincarnation of the man Goddess Hylia Herself had adored so many aeons ago. Her people were sworn to him, just as they were sworn to the Blood of the Goddess.

He was so young. Link Hallow held himself tensely, staring at the ground. The Master Sword was strapped to his back, drawing everyone’s gazes. He was twelve-years-old and so very quiet.

Sir Audric, his first escort, looked at her expectantly. Every passing servant, courtier and guard was watching and doing a terrible job of pretending they weren’t. It would be the greatest disrespect if Izzara did not kneel and welcome this boy as the Chosen Hero…But he was also a child, with anxiety shining bright in his eyes.

Izzara could not shake the feeling that this boy did not need someone to worship him. Twelve-years-old, torn away from his home, he did not need blind worship. He needed a genuine welcome, not a script.

“Link, isn’t it?” she asked, though she knew very well. The Hero, the child, glanced up and nodded. Sir Audric’s eyebrows rose in surprise.

Izzara smiled and held a hand to her heart. “My name is Izzara,” she said. “Welcome to Hyrule Castle, dear.”

[sokkas-first-fangirl]

Was King Rhoam really trying to make a power play for the throne before the calamity hit in your LoZ series? I will admit a lot of his actions do seem to be defying ancient religious traditions and he was sending Zelda away for so long, but it seems very illogical of him to try and claim the throne from his daughter.

Permit me to ramble, because rambling about Rhoam outside of Link’s angry POV is so fun. Man’s so contradictory, even to himself

Anyway…

Rhoam is tricky. He didn’t intend to step down until at least Ganon was defeated, but he didn’t intend to enact a coup either. He did not plan to be a rebel or traitor in any way, and would never see himself that way.

One thing about Rhoam: he’d been raised to be a King, or at least a partner to the Queen, in a position of immense influence and power. His parents groomed him for it and told him, again and again, that it was his destiny. He never doubted this. This was his duty to Hyrule, this was how he served his country and a grand purpose: he would be a strong, traditional and firm King. He would protect Hyrule and ensure peace lasted, even with the looming Calamity. He would be a powerful King, a good King. (Or so he hoped. So he saw himself as when he was alive.)

Then Hespera died suddenly and his grand destiny and duty to Hyrule had an expiration date. Now he was not the King Consort, now he was the King Regent.

Ghost-Rhoam may admit to himself that “destiny” didn’t get him or anyone around him anywhere good, but he still believes in destiny and duty. As he said to Link the last time we saw him, Zelda wasn’t the Queen…except she should have been. She was 17. She should have been crowned had she returned home.

Rhoam genuinely wants to protect Hyrule and believes he can best do so by staying on the throne until Ganon is gone. As Princess, Zelda can travel to sacred sites multiple times a year, even many times a month. But as Queen? Not so much. He’s not the only person in that mindset either. His supporters and those neutral to him believed it to be the sensible option. His naysayers believed he was simply power hungry. (Rhoam’s growing temper problems and arrogance over the years did not help these rumours in the least.) Depending on your POV of him, you can view his plans in multiple ways. It’s his abuse of Zelda and dismissive attitude to those around him that cause everything he does to be doubted- and is it wrong to doubt him? Depends on how you see him

Really, what Rhoam should have done was sit down with Zelda and talk to her. Explain what he was thinking and why. But alas, Rhoam wouldn’t be Rhoam if he did that. He never really took Zelda seriously. He saw her as an irresponsible, selfish and lazy girl, who simply wasn’t trying hard enough. He believed she lacked a sense of duty to Hyrule and thus would be a lacklustre Queen, especially right now, until she’d “grown up” and, in his eyes, proven herself via her magic. It didn’t cross his mind that she’d try and exert her right to be crowned now. She’d never even hinted at it before. Zelda herself accepted that it was unlikely she’d be Queen until she sealed Ganon away. Frankly, until Naydra and the Triforce of Wisdom gave her that hope and burst of confidence, she didn’t intend to stand up to Rhoam (and the court) in such a manner

To summarise: Rhoam is a mix of motivations, some honourable and some not. He should have addressed the rumours against him somehow. He should have spoken to Zelda and planned with her. His legacy in the Luminous AU is one of verbal abuse and manipulation (which is true) and contradicting rumours. The only POV characters left are people who either didn’t know him or hated him, and maybe that would have been different had Rhoam simply…worked on himself and his pride, instead of assuming things would go his way, that he could force things to go his way. If he wasn’t so focused on his destiny, if he took Zelda seriously, if he wasn’t so focused on the crown…who knows? Maybe he’d be remembered as the honourable, stern but fair King he once wished to be. Because outside of our POV characters, who has ever brought him up? As Link told him, no one cares about him anymore. The younger Rhoam, the man who married Hespera and had so many grand plans, would be horrified by what he turned into. He’d always had a pride problem, but never one so large until he lost her.

Had Zelda and the Champions made it home, things would have been messy, even if Rhoam didn’t intend for them to be